Video poker wagering game having multiple hands and player-determined assignment feature

ABSTRACT

A gaming machine for conducting a video poker wagering game, which includes a player-determined assignment feature, that allows a player to assign cards to a plurality of hands of cards. An assigned card may be used to complete one or more card hands.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims the benefit of priority of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 60/671,807, filed Apr. 14, 2005, which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.

COPYRIGHT

A portion of the disclosure of this patent document contains material that is subject to copyright protection. The copyright owner has no objection to the facsimile reproduction by anyone of the patent disclosure, as it appears in the Patent and Trademark Office patent files or records, but otherwise reserves all copyright rights whatsoever.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates generally to gaming machines and methods for playing wagering games, and more particularly to a gaming machine with a video poker wagering game that includes a player-determined assignment feature that allows a player to assign cards to a plurality of hands of cards.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Gaming machines, such as slot machines, video poker machines and the like, have been a cornerstone of the gaming industry for years. Generally, the popularity of such machines with players is dependent on the likelihood (or perceived likelihood) of winning money at the machine and the intrinsic entertainment value of the machine relative to other available gaming options. Where the available gaming options include a number of competing machines and the expectation of winning at each machine is roughly the same (or believed to be the same), players are likely to be attracted to the most entertaining and exciting machines. Shrewd operators consequently strive to employ the most entertaining and exciting machines, features, and enhancements available because such machines attract frequent play and, hence, increase profitability to the operator. Therefore, there is a continuing need for gaming machine manufacturers to continuously develop new games and improved gaming enhancements that attract frequent play through enhanced entertainment value to the player.

One concept successfully employed to enhance the entertainment value of a game is the concept of a “secondary” or “bonus” game that may be played in conjunction with a “basic” game. The bonus game may comprise any type of game, either similar to or completely different from the basic game, which is entered upon the occurrence of a selected event or outcome in the basic game. Generally, bonus games provide a greater expectation of winning than the basic game and may also be accompanied with more attractive or unusual video displays and/or audio. Bonus games may, additionally, award players with “progressive jackpot” awards funded, at least in part, by a percentage of coin-in from the gaming machine or a plurality of participating gaming machines. Because the bonus game concept offers tremendous advantages in player appeal and excitement relative to other known games, and because such games are attractive to both players and operators, there is a continuing need to develop gaming machines with new types of bonus games to satisfy the demands of players and operators.

Other concepts successfully employed to enhance current wagering games involve providing player-determined selections that allow players to have some control over certain aspects of a wagering game. For example, some wagering games may include player-selectable features, i.e. “picks,” that a player may select that reveals bonus awards, access to a bonus game, free spins of a basic game, etc. Generally, these features may provide increased opportunities for players to achieve favorable outcomes based on selections that s/he makes during game play.

In line with these types of features, some video poker games also offer player-determined selections. In some video poker games, for example, players may choose which cards they want to play among one or more card hands. Providing wagering games with player-determined features gives players the sense that they are participating in the outcome of the wagering game. This perception encourages players of video poker games to play more games and, perhaps, wager larger amounts due to the sense that they may gain more favorable outcomes if allowed to participate in the game play. Such player-determined selections enhance the entertainment value of the wagering game and attract more frequent game play. Thus, new and improved ways of offering player-determined selections, including selections for video poker wagering games, meet the needs of gaming machine manufacturers and players alike.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

According to one aspect of the present invention, a gaming machine for conducting a wagering game includes a plurality of symbols that indicate a randomly selected outcome selected from a plurality of outcomes in response to receiving a wager input. The plurality of symbols includes a plurality of cards arranged to form a plurality of card hands. The wagering game also includes an assignment feature that allows a player to add at least one card to at least one of the plurality of card hands, wherein the addition of at least one card to at least one of the plurality of card hands is determined by the player.

According to another aspect of the invention, a method of conducting a wagering game on a gaming machine is disclosed. The wagering game includes a plurality of cards arranged to form a plurality of card hands. The plurality of card hands comprises at least two groups of card hands. The method comprises providing an assignment feature that presents at least two cards to a player and allows the player to choose which of at least two cards to assign to a first group of at least two groups of card hands. The method further comprises allowing the player to choose which of at least two cards to assign to a second group of at least two groups of card hands.

According to yet another aspect of the invention, a computer readable storage medium is encoded with instructions for directing a gaming device to perform the above method.

According to a further aspect of the invention, a method of conducting a wagering game on a gaming machine is disclosed. The wagering game includes a plurality of cards arranged to form a plurality of card hands. The method includes presenting a first community card to a player via an assignment feature and allowing the player to add the first community card to a first one of the plurality of card hands and to a second one of the plurality of card hands. The method further includes presenting a second community card to a player via the assignment feature and allowing the player to add the second community card to a third one of the plurality of card hands and to the second one of the plurality of card hands. The method also includes determining whether any of the plurality of card hands with the first or second community cards corresponds to a winning outcome and rewarding an award in response to any winning outcome.

According to yet another aspect of the invention, a method of conducting a wagering game on a gaming machine is disclosed. The wagering game includes a plurality of cards arranged to form a plurality of card hands. The method comprises presenting a first card to the player via an assignment feature and adding the first card to a first player-selected card hand from the plurality of card hands. The method also comprises presenting a second card to the player via the assignment feature and adding the second card to a second player-selected card hand from the plurality of card hands. The method further comprises presenting a third card to the player via the assignment feature, adding the third card to a third card hand, and determining whether any of the plurality of card hands is a winning hand based on predetermined criteria and rewarding an award in response to any winning hands.

Additional aspects of the invention are apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art in view of the detailed description of various embodiments, made with reference to the drawings, a brief description of which is provided below.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a gaming machine embodying the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a control system suitable for operating the gaming machine;

FIG. 3 illustrates a primary display showing a wagering game with a player-determined assignment feature according to one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 illustrates the primary display of FIG. 3 after a player makes selections via the player-determined assignment feature.

FIG. 5 illustrates the primary display of FIG. 3 after a player makes additional selections via the player-determined assignment feature.

FIG. 6 illustrates a primary display showing a wagering game with a player-determined assignment feature according to another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 illustrates the primary display of FIG. 6 after a player makes selections via the player-determined assignment feature.

FIG. 8 illustrates a primary display showing a wagering game with a player-determined assignment feature according to a further embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

While this invention is susceptible of embodiment in many different forms, there is shown in the drawings and is herein described in detail preferred embodiments of the invention with the understanding that the present disclosure shall be considered as an exemplification of the principles of the invention and is not intended to limit the broad aspect of the invention to the embodiments illustrated.

Referring to FIG. 1, a gaming machine 10 is used in gaming establishments such as casinos. With regard to the present invention, the gaming machine 10 may be any type of gaming machine and may have varying structures and methods of operation. In the present invention, the gaming machine 10 is an electronic gaming machine configured to play video poker.

The gaming machine 10 comprises a housing 12 and includes input devices, including a value input device 18 and a player input device 24. For output, the gaming machine 10 includes a primary display 14 for showing information about the basic wagering game. The primary display 14 can also show information about a bonus wagering game and a progressive wagering game. The gaming machine 10 may also include a secondary display 16 for showing game events, game outcomes, and/or signage information. While these typical components found in the gaming machine 10 are described below, it should be understood that numerous other elements may exist and may be used in any number of combinations to create various forms of a gaming machine 10.

The value input device 18 may be provided in many forms, individually or in combination, and is preferably located on the front of the housing 12. The value input device 18 receives currency and/or credits inserted by a player. The value input device 18 may include a coin acceptor 20 for receiving coin currency (see FIG. 1). Alternatively, or in addition, the value input device 18 may include a bill acceptor 22 for receiving paper currency. Furthermore, the value input device 18 may include a ticket reader, or barcode scanner for reading information stored on a credit ticket, a card, or other tangible portable credit storage device. The credit ticket or card may also authorize access to a central account, which can transfer money to the gaming machine 10.

The player input device 24 comprises a plurality of push buttons 26 on a button panel for operating the gaming machine 10. In addition, or alternatively, the player input device 24 may comprise a touch screen 28 mounted by adhesive, tape, or the like over the primary display 14 and/or secondary display 16. The touch screen 28 contains soft touch keys 30 denoted by graphics on the underlying primary display 14 used to operate the gaming machine 10. The touch screen 28 provides players with an alternative method of input. A player enables a desired function either by touching the touch screen 28 at an appropriate touch key 30, or by pressing an appropriate push button 26 on the button panel. The touch keys 30 may be used to implement the same functions as push buttons 26. Alternatively, the push buttons 26 may provide inputs for one aspect of game operation while the touch keys 30 may allow for input needed for another aspect of game operation.

The various components of the gaming machine 10 may be connected directly to, or contained within, the housing 12 as seen in FIG. 1, or may be located outboard of the housing 12 and connected to the housing 12 via a variety of different wired or wireless connection methods. Thus, the gaming machine 10 comprises these components whether housed in the housing 12, or outboard of the housing 12 and connected remotely.

The operation of the basic wagering game is shown to the player on the primary display 14. The primary display 14 can also show the bonus game associated with the basic wagering game. The primary display 14 may take the form of a cathode ray tube (CRT), a high resolution LCD, a plasma display, an LED, or any other type of display suitable for use in the gaming machine 10. As shown, the primary display 14 includes the touch screen 28 overlaying the entire display (or a portion thereof) to allow players to make game-related selections. Alternatively, the primary display 14 of the gaming machine 10 may include a number of mechanical reels to display the outcome in visual association to at least one payline 32. In the illustrated embodiment, the gaming machine 10 is an “upright” version in which the primary display 14 is oriented vertically relative to the player. Alternatively, the gaming machine may be a “slant-top” version in which the primary display 14 is slanted at about a thirty-degree angle towards the player of the gaming machine 10.

A player begins play of the basic wagering game by making a wager via the value input device 18 of the gaming machine 10. A player can select play by using the player input device 24, via the buttons 26 or the touch screen keys 30. The basic game consists of a plurality of symbols arranged in an array, and includes at least one payline 32 indicating one or more outcomes of the basic game; such outcomes are randomly selected in response to the wagering input by the player. At least one of the plurality of randomly-selected outcomes may be a start-bonus outcome, which can include any variations of symbols or symbol combinations triggering a bonus game.

In some embodiments, the gaming machine 10 may also include a player information reader 52 allowing for identification of a player by reading a card with information indicating his or her true identity. The player information reader 52 is shown in FIG. 1 as a card reader, but may take on many forms including a ticket reader, bar code scanner, RFID transceiver, or computer readable storage medium interface. Currently, casinos use this identification for rewarding certain players with complimentary services or special offers. For example, a player may be enrolled in the gaming establishment's loyalty club and may be awarded certain complimentary services as that player collects points in his or her player-tracking account. The player inserts his or her card into the player information reader 52, allowing the casino's computers to register that player's wagering at the gaming machine 10. The gaming machine 10 may use the secondary display 16 or other dedicated player-tracking display for providing the player with information about his or her account or other player-specific information. Also, in some embodiments, the information reader 52 may be used to restore game assets that the player achieved and saved during a previous game session.

Turning now to FIG. 2, the various components of the gaming machine 10 are controlled by a central processing unit (CPU) 34, also referred to herein as a controller or processor (such as a microcontroller or microprocessor). To provide gaming functions, the controller 34 executes one or more game programs stored in a computer readable storage medium, in the form of memory 36. The controller 34 performs the random selection using a random number generator (RNG) of an outcome from the plurality of possible outcomes of the wagering game. Alternatively, the random event may be determined at a remote controller. The remote controller may use either an RNG or a pooling scheme for its central determination of a game outcome. It should be noted that the controller 34 may include one or more microprocessors, including but not limited to a master processor, a slave processor, and a secondary or parallel processor.

The controller 34 is also coupled to the system memory 36 and a money/credit detector 38. The system memory 36 may comprise a volatile memory (i.e., a random-access memory [RAM]) and a non-volatile memory (i.e., an EEPROM). The system memory 36 may include multiple RAM and multiple program memories. The money/credit detector 38 signals the processor that money and/or credits were input via the value input device 18. Preferably, these components are located within the housing 12 of the gaming machine 10. However, as explained above, these components may be located outboard of the housing 12 and connected to the remainder of the components of the gaming machine 10 via a variety of different wired or wireless connection methods.

As seen in FIG. 2, the controller 34 is also connected to, and controls, the primary display 14, the player input device 24, and a payoff mechanism 40. The payoff mechanism 40 is operable in response to instructions from the controller 34 to award a payoff to the player in response to certain winning outcomes that might occur in the basic game or the bonus game(s). The payoff may be provided in the form of points, bills, tickets, coupons, cards, etc. For example, in FIG. 1, the payoff mechanism 40 includes both a ticket printer 42 and a coin outlet 44. However, any of a variety of payoff mechanisms 40 well known in the art may be implemented, including cards, coins, tickets, smartcards, cash, etc. One or more pay tables stored in the system memory 36 determine the payoff amounts distributed by the payoff mechanism 40.

Communications between the controller 34 and both the peripheral components of the gaming machine 10 and external systems 50 occur through input/output (I/O) circuits 46, 48. More specifically, the controller 34 manages and receives inputs from the peripheral components of the gaming machine 10 through the input/output circuits 46. Further, the controller 34 communicates with the external systems 50 via the I/O circuits 48 and a communication path (i.e.., serial, parallel, IR, RC, 10bT, etc.). The external systems 50 may include a gaming network, other gaming machines, a gaming server, communications hardware, or a variety of other interfaced systems or components. Even though the I/O circuits 46, 48 may be shown as a single block, it should be noted that each of the I/O circuits 46, 48 may include a number of different types of I/O circuits.

Controller 34, as used herein, comprises any combination of hardware, software, and/or firmware that may be disposed or reside inside and/or outside the gaming machine 10 that may communicate with and/or control the transfer of data between the gaming machine 10 and a bus, another computer, processor, or device and/or a service and/or a network. The controller 34 may comprise one or more controllers or processors. In FIG. 2, the controller 34 in the gaming machine 10 is depicted as comprising a CPU, but the controller 34 may alternatively comprise a CPU in combination with other components, such as the I/O circuits 46, 48 and the system memory 36.

Turning now to FIG. 3, the primary display 14 of the gaming machine 10 showing a video poker game 54 is illustrated in more detail. The video poker game 54 includes a plurality of symbols depicted as a plurality of cards 56 arranged in a plurality of card hands 58. The cards 56 in each hand 58 may be randomly dealt from the same deck of cards or a separate deck for each hand 58. The plurality of card hands 58 may contain any number of cards 56 (e.g., three, four, five, six or seven cards) depending on the particular wagering game played. The embodiment shown in FIG. 3 shows three rows of cards 60, 62, 64 corresponding to three card hands 58, each hand having four cards 56 shown to a player. Each row of cards 60, 62, 64 also includes an area 70, 72, 74 for placing additional cards, which in the illustrated embodiment, is the fifth card needed to complete a five-card poker hand.

The video poker game 54 shown in FIG. 3 also includes a player-determined assignment feature 76. The player-determined assignment feature 76 includes at least one card 80 that may be placed by a player into one of the plurality of card hands 58 via areas 70, 72, 74. The card 80 is shown to the player in a face-up position. Additional cards 82, 84 are also presented to the player via the assignment feature 76, but are initially not revealed. In other embodiments, two of the three cards 80, 82, 84 are revealed to a player in a face-up position. Alternatively, all cards in the player-selectable assignment feature 76 may be revealed to the player in a face-up position.

After receiving a wager input from a player, the gaming terminal 10 shows the card hands 58 and the cards 80, 82, 84 as illustrated in FIG. 3. The player must decide whether to place the card 80 into area 70, area 72 or area 74. As illustrated in FIG. 4, the player places card 80 into area 70. After making this selection, card 82 is revealed to the player. The player must then decide where to place card 82 by selecting one of the remaining unselected areas 72, 74 shown in FIG. 4.

The selection and placement of the cards associated with the player-determined assignment feature 76 continues until all cards 80, 82, 84 are assigned and all areas 70, 72, 74 are filled, as illustrated in FIG. 5. The card hands 58 are then compared to a pay table corresponding to the video poker game 54, or other predetermined criteria, and the player is awarded credits for any winning card hands 58. Instead of being awarded credits, the player may also be awarded free plays of the basic game or a bonus game, non-monetary prizes, etc. Also, the wagering game may include a traditional draw that allows the player to hold no cards or one or more cards in each hand 58 and replace the non-held cards with replacement cards. The replacement cards may be randomly drawn from the same deck for all hands or from a separate deck for each hand. The traditional draw may occur before or after assigning the cards associated with the player-determined assignment feature 76.

As mentioned above, in alternative embodiments, multiple cards of the player-selectable assignment feature may be simultaneously revealed to the player. This allows a player to view more than one card at a time and make a determination as to which card is best suited for each of the card hands. The player, thus, has an advantage in that s/he can place the cards into the hands in such a manner as to produce the highest awards. In yet other embodiments, rather than having three cards in the assignment feature 76, only one card at a time is shown in the player-determined assignment feature 76. Thus, after a player makes his or her selection of where to place one card, a second card appears in the player-determined assignment feature. Once the player places the second card, a third card appears thus continuing until all hands are complete.

Another embodiment of the present invention is depicted in the primary display 114 shown in FIG. 6. The arrangement of cards 156 in this embodiment is similar to the arrangement of cards described above. However, the video poker game 154 shown in FIG. 6 allows a player to assign a single card to more than one card hand 158. The card hands 158 in this embodiment are shown in three rows 160, 162, 164, each row containing four cards 156 shown to a player. In this embodiment, situated between rows of cards 160, 162, 164 are two areas 170, 172 for placing additional cards.

In this particular embodiment, at least one card 180 of the player-determined assignment feature 176 can be placed such that it can be used with two different card hands 158. For example, a card placed in area 170 can be used to complete a five-card poker hand in rows 160 and 162; similarly, a card placed in area 172 can be used to complete a five-card poker hand in rows 162 and 164. As illustrated in FIG. 7, a player chooses to place card 180 in area 170, resulting in a pair of kings in the hand of row 162 and two pairs (kings and fours) in the hand of row 160. A second card 182 (FIG. 6) may then be placed in area 172. Similar to the embodiment described above, and as illustrated in FIG. 6, the cards 180, 182 may be shown to the player with one card, (i.e., card 180) revealed to the player in a face-up position while the other card, (i.e., card 182) is not revealed. In other embodiments, the cards 180, 182 may be revealed simultaneously to the player in a face-up position prior to player selections.

As discussed above, after receiving a wager input from a player, the primary display 114 shows card hands 158 in rows 160, 162, 164 and cards 180, 182 from the player-selectable assignment feature 176. The player makes his or her selection by placing cards 180, 182 into areas 170, 172 as illustrated in FIG. 7. The card 180 placed in area 170 may be used in both card hands 158 in rows 160, 162. Likewise, card 182 placed in area 172 may be used in both card hands 158 in rows 162, 164. Cards 180, 182 in this particular embodiment may be referred to as “community” cards because they are shared by more than one card hand.

The card hands 158 in rows 160 and 164 use the community cards 180 and 182, respectively, to complete those hands. By contrast, the card hand 158 in row 162 can use either community card in areas 170 or 172 to complete that hand. For example, the card hand 158 in row 162 can use either the “King of Diamonds” or the “Nine of Clubs” to complete that hand. After comparing all card hands 158 to the pay table corresponding to the video poker game 154, in some embodiments, if the card hand in row 162 produces a winning outcome using cards 180 and 182, the player may be awarded the higher of the two hands. Alternatively, the player may be awarded credits, or other prizes, for each hand if both hands produce winning outcomes, causing the row 162 to be played two different times, one with community card 170 and one with community card 172.

In a further embodiment illustrated in FIG. 8, one of the card hands 258 may contain only three cards. In this particular embodiment, the card hand 258 in row 262 shows three cards. The player must use both cards 280, 282 to complete this hand. In this embodiment as with the other embodiments described above, after comparing the card hands 258 with a pay table corresponding to video poker wagering game 254, the player may be awarded prizes for each hand with a winning outcome.

In any of the embodiments described above, the card hands may be arranged into groups of cards. A group can contain one or more card hands. For each embodiment, at least two groups of card hands can be arranged so that each group can have at least one card added to that group to complete the card hands contained in that group.

The embodiments described above are not meant to limit the scope of the present invention. Other embodiments with additional card hands, different numbers of cards in the card hands, additional player-selectable cards, etc. may fall within the scope of this invention. At some gaming terminals, a player may be offered the option of selecting a particular embodiment (i.e., the embodiment of FIGS. 3-5, the embodiment of FIGS. 6-7, or the embodiment of FIG. 8) of the wagering game that s/he wishes to play. For example, upon placing a wager, a player may be offered a choice as to which embodiment to play via a player input device 24, such as the push buttons 26 or soft touch keys 30. Alternatively, a particular embodiment may be shown depending on the amount of the wager input selected by the player. For example, one embodiment may require a wager input of three credits, while another embodiment may require a wager input of two credits. At other gaming terminals, only a single embodiment of the present invention may be available to a player.

In yet other embodiments of the present invention, the controller 34 may make one or more selections instead of the player making all selections via the player-selectable assignment feature 76. The controller 34 may, for example, choose where to place card 80, and a player may make the remaining selections of where to place cards 82, 84. Alternatively, the player may make the first one or two selections while the controller 34 may make the final selection. In yet other alternatives, the player and controller 34 may alternate making selections for placing cards 80, 82, 84.

Each of these embodiments and obvious variations thereof is contemplated as falling within the spirit and scope of the claimed invention, which is set forth in the following claims. 

1. A gaming machine comprising: a wagering game with a plurality of symbols indicating a randomly selected outcome selected from a plurality of outcomes in response to receiving a wager input, the plurality of symbols including a plurality of cards arranged to form a plurality of card hands; and an assignment feature that allows a player to add at least one card to at least one of the plurality of card hands, wherein the addition of the at least one card to the at least one of the plurality of card hands is determined by the player.
 2. The gaming machine of claim 1, wherein the plurality of card hands includes three card hands, each card hand initially containing four cards.
 3. The gaming machine of claim 2, wherein the player adds one card to each of the three card hands.
 4. The gaming machine of claim 2, wherein the player adds one card used by two of the card hands as a community card, the community card shared by the two card hands.
 5. The gaming machine of claim 4, wherein each of the two card hands using the community card produces a winning outcome, and the player is rewarded an award associated with the greater of the two hands.
 6. The gaming machine of claim 4, wherein each of the two card hands using the community card produces a winning outcome, and the player is rewarded awards associated with each of the hands.
 7. The gaming terminal of claim 1, wherein, in response to achieving a winning combination of cards with the addition of the at least one card to the at least one of the plurality of hands of cards, the player is rewarded an award.
 8. The gaming terminal of claim 1, wherein at least one card from the assignment feature is revealed to the player in a face-up position prior to being added to the at least one of the plurality of hands of cards.
 9. The gaming terminal of claim 1, wherein all cards from the assignment feature are simultaneously revealed to the player in a face-up position prior to being added to the at least one of the plurality of hands of cards.
 10. The gaming machine of claim 1, wherein a controller makes the selection for adding at least one of the cards from the deck of cards to at least one of the plurality of card hands.
 11. A method of conducting a wagering game on a gaming machine, the wagering game including a plurality of cards arranged to form a plurality of card hands, the plurality of card hands comprising at least two groups of card hands, the method comprising: providing an assignment feature that presents at least two cards to a player; allowing the player to choose which of the at least two cards to assign to a first group of the at least two groups of card hands; and allowing the player to choose which of the at least two cards to assign to a second group of the at least two groups of card hands.
 12. The method of claim 11, wherein each of the groups of card hands includes only one card hand.
 13. The method of claim 11, wherein each of the groups of hands includes two card hands and the first and second groups share one common hand.
 14. The method of claim 13, wherein the card assigned to the first group of card hands results in the common hand achieving a first winning outcome, and the card assigned to the second group of card hands results in the common hand achieving a second winning outcome.
 15. The method of claim 14, wherein the player is rewarded an award associated with the greater of the first or second winning outcome.
 16. The method of claim 14, wherein the player is rewarded an award associated with both the first and second winning outcome.
 17. A computer readable storage medium encoded with instructions for directing the gaming machine to perform the method of claim
 11. 18. The method of claim 1 1, wherein a controller is allowed to choose which of the two cards to assign to the first or second group of card hands.
 19. A method of conducting a wagering game on a gaming machine, the wagering game including a plurality of cards arranged to form a plurality of card hands, the method comprising: presenting a first card to the player via an assignment feature; adding the first card to a first player-selected card hand from the plurality of card hands; presenting a second card to the player via the assignment feature; adding the second card to a second player-selected card hand from the plurality of card hands; presenting a third card to the player via the assignment feature; adding the third card to a third card hand; determining whether any of the plurality of card hands is a winning hand based on predetermined criteria; and rewarding an award in response to any winning hands.
 20. The method of claim 19, wherein at least one of the first card, second card and third card is assigned to additional card hands such that at least one of the first card, second card and third card is a shared card and is used in determining whether any of the additional card hands is a winning card hand. 